BILL NUMBER: SB 267	CHAPTERED  10/10/99

	CHAPTER   736
	FILED WITH SECRETARY OF STATE   OCTOBER 10, 1999
	APPROVED BY GOVERNOR   OCTOBER 7, 1999
	PASSED THE SENATE   SEPTEMBER 9, 1999
	PASSED THE ASSEMBLY   SEPTEMBER 8, 1999
	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY   SEPTEMBER 7, 1999
	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY   SEPTEMBER 3, 1999
	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY   JULY 8, 1999
	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY   JUNE 24, 1999
	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY   JUNE 22, 1999
	AMENDED IN SENATE   MAY 19, 1999
	AMENDED IN SENATE   APRIL 14, 1999
	AMENDED IN SENATE   APRIL 5, 1999

INTRODUCED BY   Senator Lewis

                        FEBRUARY 1, 1999

   An act to amend Sections 41365 and 47661 of the Education Code,
relating to charter schools, and declaring the urgency thereof, to
take effect immediately.



	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   SB 267, Lewis.  Charter schools:  funding.
   Existing law establishes the Charter School Revolving Loan Fund in
the State Treasury, as a continuously appropriated fund, to loan
money to school districts for charter schools and requires the
Superintendent of Public Instruction to deposit $114,000 from the
federal Public Charter School Program grant funds awarded to the
State Department of Education for 1996-97 and, appropriated in the
Budget Act of 1996, into the Charter School Revolving Loan Fund.
Existing law authorizes additional federal Public Charter School
Program grant funds appropriated in the Budget Act of 1996 to be
transferred by the Superintendent of Public Instruction to the
Charter School Revolving Loan Fund.  Existing law authorizes loans
from money in the Charter School Revolving Loan Fund for use by
charter schools in the first year in which it enrolls pupils in an
amount not to exceed $50,000.
   This bill would delete the continuous appropriation, would delete
the references to specific items of appropriation, as they pertain to
federal Public Charter School Program grant funds, and would require
funds appropriated to the fund to remain available for the purposes
of the fund until reappropriated or reverted by the Legislature
through the Budget Act or any other act.  The bill would authorize
loans to be made from the Charter School Revolving Loan Fund directly
to certain charter schools, as well as to the chartering authority
for charter schools, and would provide that a loan to a chartering
authority, or to a charter school, shall not exceed $250,000.  Under
existing law, a chartering authority may be a school district, a
county board of education, or the State Board of Education.
   Existing law requires the Controller to make loan repayment
deductions from apportionments during each of the 2 successive fiscal
years.
   This bill would, instead, require repayment of the full amount
loaned to the  chartering authority or charter school to be deducted
by the Controller in equal annual amounts over a number of years
agreed upon between the loan recipient and the State Department of
Education, not to exceed 5 years for any loan and would make
conforming changes.
   This bill would, notwithstanding other provisions of law,
authorize a loan to be made directly to a charter school only in the
case of a charter school that is incorporated, and would require the
chartering authority to, also, be liable for repayment of the loan in
the case of default by the charter school.
   Existing law, with certain exceptions, requires an agency
sponsoring a charter school to exclude the attendance of pupils in
the charter school for the purposes of computing eligibility for
funding of categorical and other programs of the sponsoring agency.
   This bill would, instead, require that a sponsoring school
district's average daily attendance be calculated pursuant to a
formula, which would provide an adjustment for pupils attending
charter schools.
   This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as
an urgency statute.


THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:


  SECTION 1.  Section 41365 of the Education Code is amended to read:

   41365.  (a) The Charter School Revolving Loan Fund is hereby
created in the State Treasury.  The Charter School Revolving Loan
Fund shall be comprised of federal funds obtained by the state for
charter schools and any other funds appropriated or transferred to
the fund through the annual budget process.  Funds appropriated to
the Charter School Revolving Loan Fund shall remain available for the
purposes of the fund until reappropriated or reverted by the
Legislature through the annual Budget Act or any other act.
   (b) Loans may be made from moneys in the Charter School Revolving
Loan Fund to a chartering authority for charter schools that are not
a conversion of an existing school, or directly to a charter school
that qualifies to receive funding pursuant to Chapter 6 (commencing
with Section 47630) that is not a conversion of an existing school,
upon application of a chartering authority or charter school and
approval by the Superintendent of Public Instruction.  A loan is for
use by the charter school during the period from the date the charter
is granted pursuant to Section 47605  to the end of the fiscal year
in which the charter school first enrolls pupils.  Money loaned to a
chartering authority for a charter school, or to a charter school,
pursuant to this section shall be used only to meet the purposes of
the charter granted pursuant to Section 47605.  The loan to a
chartering authority for a charter school, or to a charter school,
pursuant to this subdivision shall not exceed two hundred fifty
thousand dollars ($250,000).  This subdivision does not apply to a
charter school that obtains renewal of a charter pursuant to Section
47607.
   (c) Commencing with the first fiscal year following the fiscal
year the charter school first enrolls pupils, the Controller shall
deduct from apportionments made to the chartering authority or
charter school, as appropriate, an amount equal to the annual
repayment of the amount loaned to the chartering authority or charter
school for the charter school under this section and pay the same
amount into the Charter School Revolving Loan Fund in the State
Treasury.  Repayment of the full amount loaned to the chartering
authority shall be deducted by the Controller in equal annual amounts
over a number of years agreed upon between the loan recipient and
the State Department of Education, not to exceed five years for any
loan.
   (d) (1) Notwithstanding other provisions of law, a loan may be
made directly to a charter school pursuant to this section only in
the case of a charter school that is incorporated.
   (2) Notwithstanding other provisions of law, in the case of
default of a loan made directly to a charter school pursuant to this
section, the chartering authority shall, also, be liable for
repayment of the loan.
  SEC. 2.  Section 47661 of the Education Code, as amended by Chapter
78 of the Statutes of 1999, is amended to read:
   47661.  For purposes of paragraph (1) of subdivision (a) of
Section 42238.5, a sponsoring school district's average daily
attendance shall be computed as follows:
   (a) Compute the sponsoring school district's regular average daily
attendance in the current year, excluding all attendance of pupils
in charter schools.
   (b) Compute the sponsoring school district's second principal
apportionment regular average daily attendance for the prior year,
excluding all attendance of pupils who either attended a charter
school in the prior year or who satisfy both of the following
conditions:
   (1) He or she attended one or more noncharter schools of the
school district between July 1 and the last day of the second period,
inclusive, in the prior year.
   (2) He or she attended a charter school sponsored by the school
district between July 1 and the last day of the second period,
inclusive, in the current year.
   (c) To the greater of the amounts computed pursuant to
subdivisions (a) and (b), add the regular average daily attendance in
the current year of all pupils attending charter schools sponsored
by the district that are not funded pursuant to this chapter.
  SEC. 3.  This act is an urgency statute necessary for the immediate
preservation of the public peace, health, or safety within the
meaning of Article IV of the Constitution and shall go into immediate
effect.  The facts constituting the necessity are:
   In order that necessary educational opportunities can be made
available for the entire 1999-2000 public school year, it is
necessary that this act take effect immediately.
